Rotary mining machine



Jan. 10, 1956 P. J. HARINCK ROTARY MINING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledJan. 19, 1953 INVENTOR. P5222 J. HAE/NCK YKMLQLK WW ATTOPNEKS.

Jan. 10, 1956 P. J. HARINCK ROTARY MINING MAQHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FiledJan. 19, 1953 & mm ME i ATTOENE V5 56 P. J. HARINCK ROTARY MININGMACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 19, 1953 IN V EN TOR.

PETER J. HAQ/NCK ATTORNEYS.

FIG. 4

RQTARY WING MACHINE Peter I. Harinck, Ferndale, Mich.

Application January 19, 1953, Serial No. 243M362 6 Claims. (Cl. 255-22)This invention relates to an apparatus for drilling holes into the earthsuch, for example, as core drilling to obtain subterranean samples inconnection with mining operations or proposed mining operations.

In such an apparatus the depth of the bore and the length of the drillrod or pipe may be hundreds and even thousands of feet long. This isparticularly true in some types of operations involved in test hole orcore drilling.

in accordance with the invention, the drill rod, which is hollow and inthe form of a pipe for core drilling, is rotated and is fed downwardlyinto the earth under pressure. The apparatus involves a chuck device forengaging the drill rod to rotate it and advance it into the earth and,obviously, the drill rod can only be advanced in a succession ofrelatively short stages. The chuck of the mechanism has a limited rangeof movement and following each increment of advance the chuck must bereleased from the drill rod and retracted and again applied to the drillrod. It is a primary purpose of this invention to provide ahydraulically actuated mechanism for advancing the drill rod into theearth as it is rotated and for retracting the chuck between incrementsof advancement wherein the hydraulic medium acts upon the chuck toengage it with and disengage it from the drill rod. When the hydraulicmedium is applied in a manner to advance the drill rod into the earth,the pressure of the hydraulic medium is so conducted to the chuck so asto cause the chuck to engage the drill rod and when the hydraulic mediumis applied to retract the chuck the pressure thereof disengages thechuck from the drill rod. Thus the chuck is automatically operated in aself-timing manner.

One embodiment of the invention is disclosed in the accompanyingdrawings:

Fig. 1 is a View partly in elevation and partly in section of anapparatus constructed in accordance with the invention.

Pig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagram of the hydraulic system.

Fig. 4 is a View of the chuck taken partly in elevation and partly invertical section.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the chuck.

The device has a frame 1 which includes an upper support member 2 and alower support member 3. The upper support member supports an upperbearing member 5 and the lower support member supports a lower hearingmember 6 as shown in Fig. 2. The support members 2 and 3 also supporttwo cylinders 8 and 9 as shown in Fig. 1. Pistons 10 and 11 are disposedwithin the cylinders 8 and 9 respectively and are connected by pistonrods 12 and 13 respectively to the cross member 15 of a drill headgenerally indicated at H. The drill head has a body member 16 which inturn has a cap 17, the body and cap constituting a cylinder. An actuator18 is disposed pistonwise within the body member. The actuator 18 andthe cylinder provided by the body member 16 and its cap 17 have threediameters as shown in Fig. 1 and an O-ring 20 is provided in eachdiameter which in turn provide a sealed 2,730,331 Patented Jan. 10, 1956chamber 21 above the actuator and a sealed chamber 22 below theactuator. The actuator 18 has a tapered opening 23 within which isdisposed a chuck 25. The chuck is secured to the body member by means ofthreads shown at 26. A rotary drive sleeve 28 extends through the crossmember 15 and is journalled therein by bearings 30. The upper end of therotary drive sleeve 28 is threadedly secured to the chuck 25 by threadsshown at 31; hence the body member 16, the actuator 18, and the chuck25, rotate with the sleeve 28 relative to the cross member 15 and areheld from axial movement by the bearings 30. Seals of the O-ring type asshown at 27 are disposed between the body 16 and the cross member 15.The sleeve 28 extends through the upper bearing member 5 and the lowerbearing member 6 and is journalled thereby to the upper support member 2and the lower support member 3 respectively. The sleeve 28 is rotatablydriven by the bevelled gear 32 which in turn is driven by the bevelledgear 33. The gear 32 has one or more keys 35 which engage one or morekey slots 36 in the sleeve 28 thereby providing means for rotating thesleeve. A support sleeve 37 envelopes the drive sleeve 28, extendsbetween the upper bearing member 5 and the lower bearing member 6 and issupported and secured into position thereby and is rotatable with thesleeve 28. The gear 32 is secured to the sleeve 3'7 by means of bolts 33and is thereby held in proper position tobe engaged by the drive gear 33which may be driven by suitable means (not shown). A drill rod or drillpipe 4%, which in effect is the shank of the drilling tool, is extendedthrough the length of the sleeve 28 through the interior of the chuck 25and through an opening 19 provided therefor in the cap 17.

Referring particularly to Figs. 4 and 5, the chuck 25 is a monolithicpiece of metal having a base ring portion 41, a collet portion 42 and aninterjacent neck portion 43. The base ring is threaded exteriorly asshown at 26 for engagement with the body member 16 and is threadedinteriorly as shown at 31 for engagement with the rotary drive sleeve 25as shown in Fig. 1. The collet portion is comprised of eight arcuatewedges 45 separated by eight slots 46. The sides of the collet portiontaper inwardly from the bottom to top at an angle of approximatelytwelve and one-half degrees. The interior faces 47 of the collet wedgesare roughened in order to permit the chuck in its closed position toengage the drill pipe 44 in a non-slip grip.

Referring to Fig. l, the walls of the tapered opening 23 in the actuator18 engage the tapered exterior surfaces of the collet portion 42 so thatwhen the actuator is moved downwardly the collet wedges are forcedlaterally or radially inwardly and force the roughened interior faces 47thereof into tight engagement with the drill pipe; when the actuator ismoved upwardly and out of engagement with the chuck, the collet segmentsare permitted to disengage from the drill rod by their resilient action.

A hydraulic system is provided for reversibly moving the pistons 1t? and11 within the cylinders 8 and 9 re spectively and for reversibly movingthe actuator 18' within the body member 16. Refer especially to Fig. 3.The hydraulic system comprises a reservoir 50 in which hydraulic fluidmay be stored, a pump 51, a four-way valve 52, a check valve 53 and athrottling valve 54 arranged in parallel, and various interconnectingpressure lines. A passageway 55 extends through the piston It), throughthe length of the piston rod 12, and connects with the pressure line 57which in turn connects with passageway 57a in body 16 (shown in Fig. 1).For this purpose, cross member 15 may have a port 571 connected withline 57 and aligned with an annular portion 5% of passageway 57a.Passageway 55 opens into closure 58 beneath the piston it) through anorifice 56 and passageway 57a opens. into closure 22 beneath theactuator through an orifice 59 so that the two closures are in hydrauliccommunication.

A passageway 60 in the piston rod 13 has an orifice 61 communicatingwith the cylinder space 63 above the piston 11. The passageway 60connects into lines 62 and 62a (Fig. 1) with passage 62a connecting intothe cylinder space 21 above the actuator 18. In the drive position ofthe valve 52 shown in solid lines in Fig. 3 the pump 51 forces hydraulicfluid from the reservoir 50 through the valve, through the lines 65, andinto the closures 63 and 63:: thereby forcing the pistons 10 and 11downwardly, that is, in a direction for advancing the drill rod. This isthe drive stroke. This movement of the pistons forces fluid out of theclosures 58 and 55a through the lines 66 and 67 to the valves 53 and 54.The check valve 53 compels the fluid to pass through the throttlingvalve 54 from where it passes-through the valve 52 and returns to thereservoir. Adjustment of the throttle valve 54 controls the rate of flowof hydraulic fluid therethrough and hence controls the rate at which thepistons, and therefore the drill rod, is advanced. In the returnposition of the valve 52 shown in dotted lines, hydraulic fluid isforced by the pump 51 through the valve 52, through the valves 53 and54, through the lines 67 and 66 and thence into the closures 58 and58a,- forcing the pistons 10 and 11 to move upwardly. This is the returnor retracting stroke of the piston and is accomplished relativelyquickly since the valve 53 is opened wide by pressure acting in thereturn direction. This movement of the pistons forces hydraulic fluidout of the closures 63 and 63a through the lines 65, through the valve52 and into the reservoir 50.

During the drive stroke of the pistons 10 and 11 the pressure in theclosures 63 and 63a is greater than the pressure in the closures 58 and58a. Since the closure 58 is in communication with the closure 22 underthe actuator and the closure 63 is in communication with the closure 21above the actuator, during the drive stroke of the pistons the pressurein the closure 21 will be greater than the pressure in the closure 22 sothat the actuator will be forced downwardly into engagement with thechuck 25. Similarly, during the return or retracting stroke of thepistons, the pressure in the closures 58 and 58a is greater than thepressure in the closures 63 and 63a and the pressure in the closure 22will be greater than the pressure in the closure 21 so that the actuator18 is forced upwardly out of engagement with the chuck.

Figs. 1 and 3 show the pistons 10 and 11 near the bottom of the drivestroke. At this time the pressure in the closure 63, 63a, and 21 isgreater than the pressure a in the closures 58, 58a, and 22 so that theactuator 18 is forced into tight engagement with the chuck 25, causingthe chuck to grip the drill pipe 40 tightly. The drill pipe is thuscaused to rotate with the chuck 25 which in turn is being rotated by therotary drive sleeve 28. Simultaneously, by action of the pistons 10 and11 acting through the piston rods 12 and 13 and the drill head H, thedrill pipe is caused to advance whereby the drilling is accomplished. Atthe bottom of the drive stroke the valve 52 is shifted to the returnposition so that the pressure in the closures 58, 58a, and 22 becomesgreater than that in the closures 63, 63a, and 21. This pressure reverseinstantaneously forces the actuator 18 out of engagement with the chuck25, permitting the segments thereof to disengage from the drill rod; andsimultaneously, the pistons 10 and 11 are forced upwardly and carry thedrill head upwardly in the return stroke. At the top of the returnstroke, that is when the pistons 10 and 11 are near the top of thecylinders 8 and 9 respectively, the valve 52 is returned to the driveposition. The relative pressures in the closures 58, 58a, and 22 and theclosures 63, 63a, and 21 are again immediately reversed, the actuator 18is again forced into engagement with the chuck 25, causing the chuck totake a new bite on the drill pipe 49, and causing the drill rod to againbegin rotating; and

simultaneously, a new drive stroke is begun whereby the drillingoperation is resumed. Continued pressure in the closures 63 and 63aforces the pistons 10 and 11 downwardly until the drive stroke iscompleted, whereupon the cycle is repeated.

Thus a device is provided for causing a chuck to take a bite on thedrill pipe, to rotate the drill rod, to advance it to a certain distanceto then release the pipe and return to itsoriginal position, take a newbite on a pipe and again rotate it and advance it. It is particularly tobe noted that the operation of the chuck is automatic in that it engagesand releases the drill rod as the valve 52 is operated to cause downwardor upward movement.

It should be understood thatsuch terms as upward, downward, beneath,etc., are used herein merely as convenient terminology and not asdelimitations.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for boring a hole into the earth comprising, two drillrod advancing cylinders, a piston in each cylinder, a piston rodextending from each piston, a head to which the piston rods areconnected, a hollow driving member journalled in the head, means forrotating the driving member, a chuck cylinder rotatably mounted on thehead, a chuck piston in the chuck cylinder having an openingtherethrough, seal means between the chuck piston and the ends .of thechuck cylinder, a hollow chuck member securedto the driving member andhaving an expandable and contractable portion lying within the openingin the chuck piston, the driving member, the chuck cylinder, the chuckpiston and the hollow chuck memberadapted to have the drill rod of aboring tool extend therethrough, the expandable and contractable portionof the chuck member having external inclined surfaces, the Wallsdefining the opening in the chuck piston having inclined surfacesoperable on the inclined surfaces of the chuck member, means forsupplying hydraulic medium under pressure, conduit means extending toopposite ends of the said advancing cylinders and to opposite ends ofthe chuck cylinder, and control means operable to introduce hydraulicmedium to the said advancing cylinders to urge the said head withadvancing movement and to introduce hydraulic medium to one end of thechuck cylinder to cause the chuck piston to shift and contract the saidchuck portion into engagement with the drill rod, whereby the drill rodis rotated and urged into the earth, and operable to introduce hydraulicmedium to the opposite ends of the advancing cylinders and the oppositeend of the chuck cylinder for release of the chuck from the drill rodand retracting movement of the head.

2. An apparatus for boring a hole into the earth comprising, drill rodadvancing cylinders, a piston in each cylinder, a piston rod extendingfrom each piston, a head to which the piston rods are connected, ahollow driving member journalled in the head, means for rotating thedriving member, a chuck cylinder rotatably mounted on the head, a chuckpiston in the chuck cylinder having an opening therethrough, seal meansbetween the chuck piston and the ends of the chuck cylinder, a hollowchuck member secured to the driving member and having a chuck portion,the driving member, the chuck cylinder, the chuck piston and the hollowchuck adapted to have the drill rod of a boring tool extendtherethrough, the chuck portion and the chuck piston having co-actingparts for actuating the chuck portion to cause it to engage anddisengage the drill rod, means for supplying hydraulic medium underpressure, conduit means extending to opposite ends of the advancingcylinders and to opposite ends of the chuck cylinder, and control meansoperable to introduce hydraulic medium to the advancing cylinders and toone end of the chuck cylinder to urge said head with advancing movementand cause the chuck piston to shift and actuate the chuck portion intoengagement with the drill-rod, whereby the drill rod is rotated andurged into the earth, and operable to introduce hydraulic medium to theopposite ends of the advancing cylinders and the opposite end of thechuck cylinder for release of the chuck from the drill rod andretracting movement of the head.

3. The apparatus as recited in claim 2 characterized in that the chuckcylinder has an intermediate portion of relatively large diameter andend portions of relatively small diameter and the chuck piston hasintermediate and end portions respectively fitting the intermediate andend portions of the chuck cylinder and seal means between the endportions of the chuck piston and the walls of the end portions of thechuck cylinder.

4. An automatic rotary drilling machine ffor drilling holes into theearth comprising, a base, a drill head, hydraulic cylinder and pistonmeans connecting said base and drill head and being operable selectivelyto advance said drill head for drilling and to retract said drill headrespectively by introducing hydraulic medium into one end end and theother end of said cylinder means, drive means rotatably mounted on saidbase, said drive means having a portion movable for advancing andretracting with said drill head and having a chuck fixed thereon, saiddrill head having a rotatable portion fixed on said movable portion ofsaid drive means, means on said rotatable portion forming a cylindermeans around said chuck, a piston in the latter said cylinder means foroperating said chuck, the latter said cylinder means being open ended sothat a drill pipe may project through said chuck, the latter said pistonbeing hydraulically reciprocable to actuate said chuck for engagementand disengagement with a drill pipe therein by introducing hydraulicmedium into one end and the other respectively of the last namedcylinder means, the like-named ends of said two cylinder means being inhydraulic communication, whereby to advance and retract said drill headrespectively when said chuck engages and disengages the drill pipe. T

5. An automatic rotary drilling machine for drilling holes into theearth comprising, a base member, a drill head member, at least twohydraulic cylinders with pistons therein mounted on one of said members,piston rods on said pistons connected to said other member, said drillhead being advanced for drilling and retracted by introducing hydraulicmedium respectively in one'end and the other end of said cylinders,drive means rotatably mounted on said base, said drive means having aportion movable for advancing and retracting with said drill head andhaving a chuck fixed thereon, said drill head having a rotatable portionfixed on said movable portion of said drive means, means on saidrotatable portion forming a cylinder around said chuck and piston meanstherein engaging said chuck, the latter said cylinder being open endedto permit drill pipe to project through said chuck, the latter saidpiston being hydraulically reciprocable to actuate said chuck forengagement and disengagement with drill pipe therein by introducinghydraulic medium in one end and the other end respectively of the lattersaid cylinder, one of said piston rods having a passageway opening intosaid one end of the cylinder thereon, conduit means connecting saidpassageway and said one end of the latter said cylinder, the otherpiston rod having a passageway opening into said other end of thecylinder thereon, and conduit means connecting the latter saidpassageway and said other end of the latter said cylinder, whereby toadvance and retract-said drill head respectively when said chuck engagesand disengages from the drill pipe.

6. An apparatus for boring a hole into the earth comprising, a head, ahollow rotary driving member journalled in the head and adapted to havethe drill rod of a boring tool extend therethrough, a chuck membersecured to the driving member, a cylinder for hydraulic mediumjournalled on'the head concentrically with the driving member, a pistonin the cylinder concentric with the driving member, both the cylinderand piston having openings for the passage of the drill rodtherethrough, the piston being operable by hydraulic medium to causeengagement of the chuck member with the drill rod or to cause release ofthe chuck member from the drill rod, hydraulic motor means operable tomove the head with advancing movement orto move the head with retractingmovement, means forsupplying hydraulic medium under pressure, conduitmeans for conveying hydraulic medium to the said hydraulic motor meansand said cylinder, and a single control valve means operable tosimultaneously introduce hydraulic medium to the said hydraulic motormeans and said cylinder to cause advancing movement of the head andengagement of the chuck member with the drill rod, whereby the drill rodis rotated as it is advanced, and operable tosimultaneously introducehydraulic medium to said hydraulic motor means and said cylinder toshift the head with retracting movement and disengage the chuck memberfrom the drill rod during the retracting movement of the head.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,114,305 Johansen Apr. 19, 1938 2,617,630 Johansen Nov. 11, 19522,638,324 Ball et al May 12, 1953

